Location: Inside Carmel Mission Basilica
Upon his death in 1784, St. Junípero Serra was laid to rest in the sanctuary of the adobe church he had constructed, alongside his longtime associate, Father Crespi. In 1797, when the permanent stone church was erected, it was deliberately designed to encompass both graves, preserving this hallowed burial site.
The sanctuary later became the final resting place for Serra’s successor, Fr. Fermín Francisco de Lasuén, who was interred to Serra’s right upon his own passing.
Also interred with the three padres is Fr. Lopez—a young friar who died at the Mission. Lopez is also depicted in the Serra Memorial Cenotaph.
Right: 1832 photo of the granite tablet marking the graves of Frs. Serra, Crespi, De Lasuén, and Lopez inside the Basilica.
On September 17, 1987, Pope John Paul II visited Carmel Mission and paid homage to St. Junípero Serra by laying flowers on his grave.
The original church floor was packed dirt and had no pews. Both Spanish and Native Americans were buried beneath it. Records indicate 374 burials. After the missions closed, Native Americans continued to bury their dead there, but records are incomplete. There are likely many more people buried under the floor than documented.
Right: The grave markers of José Antonio Roméu, Spanish governor of California, and Hermenegildo Sal, comandante of the Presidio, who are both buried beneath the church floor.
